Kramer Tire Will Make Way For Progress

HAMPTON — The people who promote downtown Hampton say they have a hidden link to promoting growth.

It's disguised as a tire store.

Now they want to take advantage of it, and the result would be a major downtown switch.

Kramer Tire Co., which sits on city-owned land in the heart of the downtown, would move to the fringes of the business district.

In its place would be a retail complex with shops and restaurants, and perhaps a public courtyard where a jazz combo could play on warm summer nights.

The first step in the process took place Monday. The Hampton Planning Commission unanimously recommended a rezoning so Kramer could move. The City Council gets the final say.

The city bought the Kramer site last year with the idea of developing it. The city considers it a strategic piece of real estate, said June McPartland, director of retail development.

To the south are the waterfront, the Virginia Air and Space Center, the Hampton Carousel and the site of a proposed high-speed commuter ferry.

"We are trying very hard," she said, "to link that area to the rest of the retail core."

The retail core is just to the north, represented by shops, taverns and restaurants on Queens Way and Wine Street. Developing the Kramer corner might be just the thing to link the two areas, McPartland said.

A study commissioned by the city says the downtown can support roughly 40,000 additional square feet of restaurant and/or retail space.

With all this in mind, McPartland said, the council will be asked to do three things at its March 10 meeting:

* Approve the rezoning on first reading. It will require a second vote at a subsequent meeting to be final.

* Renew Kramer's lease with a provision that says either side can end it with six months' notice. The current lease expires in April, McPartland said.

* Invite developers to submit proposals for the restaurant/retail complex.

McPartland said the city wants a showpiece building. Besides serving as a link between two vital areas, it considers the corner of Settlers Landing and King as an entrance to the downtown.

"We don't want to put down a big box," she said.

She envisions a horseshoe- or staple-shaped building with a center courtyard that would invite pedestrians and might be a place for musicians to play. The developers will be asked to be creative, she said.

The timing will be tricky. Assuming the council agrees to renegotiate Kramer's lease, the city doesn't want to force out Kramer prematurely, nor does it want to hold up the developer.

Both McPartland and Kramer said in separate interviews that they hope the change will take place by the end of the year.

"Keep in mind," McPartland said, "we will work with Mr. Kramer to time the development with his move."

At Monday's planning commission meeting, both sides went out of their way to praise each other on how the case has been handled.

The tire company plans to build a new store with red brick walls. The landscaping will blend in with the area, said attorney Rusty Friddell. "We jokingly refer to this as the Colonial Williamsburg edition of the Kramer Tire store," he told the commission.

Kramer wants to move to build on land zoned Special Public Interest-Old Hampton. The city crafted that zone to protect the historic Old Hampton area from unwanted commercial invasion.

The new store would border the neighborhood. City planner Liz Via said it is rare for the city to recommend rezoning any land in this district, but several things worked in favor of it:

* The Olde Hampton Community Association supports the project, city officials say. Kramer will grant an easement to allow the association to put up a neighborhood sign at the corner of Armistead and Queen. Kramer will design its own sign to complement the neighborhood sign. An association representative could not be reached for comment.

* Although the rear of the store would border the neighborhood, the front would face Armistead Avenue, which has several businesses. Surrounding the store would be a carpet business, a taxi dispatching service and a bank.

The downtown wants to keep its businesses, and Kramer has run a successful operation downtown since 1991. That's the year he purchased the Goodyear Tire Store, which had been at Settlers Landing and King since 1968.

Councilman Paige Washington, who is a member of the planning commission, said he was happy the two sides could work together.

"We certainly didn't want to miss you," he said, "as far as your business is concerned."

Hugh Lessig can be reached at 247-4787 or by e-mail at hlessig@dailypress.com